The present invention relates to brassieres particularly suitable for women of smaller than average bust volume and to the method of sizing the same.
Research has shown that there is a high level of dissatisfaction among small busted women concerning the fit of their brassieres and that the established procedures for sizing these brassieres in mass production does not accurrately reflect the wearer needs.
Brassieres for the most part are produced in standard sizes based upon the around the body dimension of the wearer, and a cup volume designation. In the United States the body measurement is stated in inches and is divided into two inch increments, eg. 30, 32, 34, 36, 38. Cup volume is referred to by the letters of the alphabet beginning at AA and progressing to A, B, C, D and DD and with AA being the smallest volume size.
As is well known in the brassiere manufacturing industry, when a brassiere style is being developed it is initially fitted to a particular size. The size which is customarily used is size 34B, because it is considered to be generally representative of the most commonly worn size. A master pattern for each of the major brassiere components is developed from this size 34B prototype. This master pattern is then used in making pattern for other sizes. This latter activity is called grading and its broadest sense is typical of the grading systems used in the sizing of clothing in general, such as referred to in U.S. Pat. No. 2,091,263, to Aster.
It has been the accepted industry practice in the grading from the size 34B to smaller volume capacity cup sizes, eg. size 34A, to reduce on a proportional basis, both the depth of the breast receiving cup and the entire perimeter of the breast receiving cup. By proportionally reducing the entire circumferential perimeter of the cup, the remaining body encircling portions are required to be elongated so that the around the body fit (eg. 34 inches) could be achieved. The reduction in the circumference of the cup perimeter on a proportional basis also results in the lower edge of the cup being positioned upon the chest wall in the size 34A brassiere differently than in a size 34B brassiere of like styling.
While it has been well known that dissatisfaction with fit was being experienced by A and AA cup wearers (as well as with wearers on the lower end of the B cup range), only limited success has been achieved in correcting the problem. One approach has been to add padding to the cups to have the cups approximate the volume of a larger volume cup. Other workers in the art have provided non-supporting stretch cups, but these cups merely cover the breasts and do not support or aid in shaping them. These approaches employ the traditional grading method.
As hereinafter set forth, the present invention has recognized the deficiences in the prior practices and provides brassieres and a method of sizing the same which economically permits mass production of better fitting brassieres for smaller than average busted women.